Cigna In Contract Dispute With Parent Company Of Four Connecticut Hospitals

People who have Cigna Corp. as their health insurer could face higher, out-of-network rates for non-emergency medical care starting Oct. 1 at four hospitals in the Hartford region affiliated with Hartford HealthCare.

The health insurer and hospital system have failed to agree on terms of a new contract, and the current contract expires Sept. 30.

Hartford HealthCare sent letters Friday warning of the potentially higher rates that could affect 20,900 Cigna customers who have been patients at any of Hartford HealthCare's acute care facilities: Hartford Hospital, MidState Medical Center in Meriden, Hospital of Central Connecticut in New Britain and Southington, and Windham Hospital in Willimantic.

"After several months of negotiations, we made the difficult decision on May 31 2013, to terminate our contract with Cigna," Hartford HealthCare spokeswoman Rebecca Stewart said in a prepared statement.

If the two parties fail to get a new contract, more expensive out-of-network rates also would apply to 540 clinicians with exclusive admitting privileges to the four hospitals, Cigna spokesman Mark Slitt said. Cigna said patients will still be able to get in-network rates at other hospitals, such as Saint Francis Hospital, John Dempsey Hospital in Farmington, Manchester Memorial Hospital, Rockville General Hospital and Bristol Hospital.

Less expensive, in-network rates will continue to apply to emergency services and any medical care that is in the middle of treatment, including pregnancies.

"There is still time, however, to reach an agreement before the contract officially ends on September 30, 2013," Stewart, the hospital spokeswoman, said. "In the meantime, we remain deeply committed to exploring new options with Cigna and resolving negotiations in good faith to reach a just solution for both parties"

This is the most recent of many contract battles between health insurers and hospitals. At issue is the reimbursement rates that insurers will pay hospitals for the medical treatment they provide. Disputes are often resolved shortly before the contract expires, or soon thereafter.

"We have an obligation to protect the interests of our clients and customers and ensure that they have access to high-quality doctors and hospitals at a reasonable cost, especially during these challenging economic times," Slitt, the Cigna spokesman, said.

If patients have questions, Hartford HealthCare has set up a hotline: 855-373-6522.